


Study buddies

by dahyunayeon



Category: TWICE (Band)
Genre: F/F, Fake Dating, Fluff, University AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-13
Updated: 2021-01-13
Packaged: 2021-03-17 09:02:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28722564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dahyunayeon/pseuds/dahyunayeon
Summary: Jeongyeon can't keep her mouth shut, and Tzuyu can't stop blushing. But if your crush asks you to be her fake girlfriend, you can't say no to that, right?
Relationships: Chou Tzuyu/Yoo Jeongyeon
Comments: 5
Kudos: 136





	Study buddies

**Author's Note:**

> commissioned by my lovely friend jan, thank you so so much <3

Jeongyeon sighs as she slides her credit card back in her wallet. The barista gives her two cups of coffee and Jeongyeon thanks them with a smile. She walks through the crowded café trying not to spill anything, bumping with a few people along the way, but she makes it safely to the table where her friends are. She places one of the cups in front of Nayeon, and sits with her across from Dahyun and Chaeyoung. 

“Thank you Jeongyeonnie,” Nayeon singsongs, using the cute voice that makes Jeongyeon fake gag. 

“And they say chivalry is dead,” Chaeyoung teases with a smirk. Jeongyeon rolls her eyes and flicks her off.

“ _ You _ of all people should know.” Nayeon quirks an eyebrow and Jeongyeon chuckles next to her.

“Nothing more romantic than an oil portrait and a bouquet of roses to declare your love.”

Chaeyoung pouts and slides down her seat, “I like you guys more when you’re fighting.”

“It was very sweet, Chaeng.” Dahyun assures her girlfriend, holding her hand on top of the table, “She could give you a tip or two.” Dahyun shoots at Jeongyeon, adding an overly dramatic glare.

“Ooh, are you gonna let her talk to you like that,” Nayeon adds to the fire before taking a sip of her drink, keeping her eyes on Jeongyeon. It’s all in good fun, they’re used to joking like this, but Dahyun still gulps, not wanting to offend her friend.

“No hard feelings,” Jeongyeon shrugs, sipping from her coffee and getting a foam mustache she licks away. “I’ll ask if I ever need them.”

“You might as well ask now. When’s the last time you’ve been on a date?”

Jeongyeon frowns and elbows Nayeon. “That’s none of your business.”

“I just don’t want you to be the single aunt…”

“I don’t want or  _ need  _ a girlfriend. You know that.” Jeongyeon replies calmly, used to Nayeon’s insistence.

“Come on, even little Chaeyoung here got the guts to finally ask Dahyun out, and look at how sweet they are!” Nayeon points to the youngests, who were  _ eskimo kissing _ . In  _ public _ . “Don’t you want that for yourself?” Nayeon asks, although she sounds a little unsure.

“Not really…” Jeongyeon makes a disgusted face, despite loving her friends’ relationship. “And it’s not about having guts, I just genuinely don’t want to be with anyone right now. I’m focusing on school.”

“You literally failed two classes last semester.” Chaeyoung mumbles, now resting her head on Dahyun’s shoulder.

“And that’s why I need to give it my undivided attention.” 

Nayeon lets the topic go, at least for now. Jeongyeon knows her friend isn’t one to give up easily. 

It’s six a.m on a monday morning, and it’s raining outside, freezing cold. And Jeongyeon? She’s walking into the university library with a smile. There are a few people scattered around on the tables, some asleep, drooling on their textbooks, and a few others doing their best to keep their eyes open.

All-nighters were never Jeongyeon’s thing, she’d rather get up early and seize the morning. And luckily for her, she met someone who shares her mindset. 

Tzuyu is already at their usual table, taking off her raincoat and bag. 

“Good morning,” Jeongyeon greets her happily, gripping the straps of her bag and swinging on the ball of her feet.

“Hi Jeong,” Tzuyu smiles shyly; despite having known Jeongyeon for the last few months. 

“Remember that one chapter that had me sleepless?” Jeongyeon asks excitedly and Tzuyu nods. “I understood it! Well, the internet helped, but I got it.”

They sit across from each other and take out their notebooks. They have great chemistry, as they both like to study quietly, only talking when one of them has a question and during their breaks. Despite being a year younger, Tzuyu is at the level of the top students in Jeongyeon’s year, and she hopes Tzuyu can give her a hand with her failed classes.

Jeongyeon likes Tzuyu, because she’s smart, kind, and always willing to help. And she has to admit, she’s very pretty— Jeongyeon was kind of starstruck when they first met. 

They easily fall into the dynamic they’ve created over their past study dates, typing away in silence until someone has a question. 

Jeongyeon has one more chance to pass one of her failed classes, so she focuses extra hard on the essay she needs to write for additional points. She’s struggling, she has to admit it, so she sighs deeply and turns to Tzuyu for help. 

She’s surprised to find Tzuyu already staring at her, with her cheek squished by her hand as she rests on the table, flicking a pen with her other hand and with her eyes stuck on Jeongyeon. 

“Um, Tzu?” Jeongyeon waves her hand in front of her face and Tzuyu jolts, clearly having zoomed out— it just so happens that she did so looking at Jeongyeon, or at least that’s what the older girl assumes. She doesn’t think too much of it. 

“Sorry,” Tzuyu laughs nervously and tucks her hair behind her ear. “Did you need something?”

_ Cute _ . “Just… what does this word mean?”

Jeongyeon and Nayeon hold an intense staring competition across their small kitchen table. 

“Don’t do it.” Nayeon mutters, squinting her eyes.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Jeongyeon shrugs, smirking.

“Believe me… you don’t want to.”

Jeongyeon picks out a card and raises it dramatically, letting the tension build, then slams a +4 on the table. 

“Ha!” Jeongyeon screams in victory, pointing at Nayeon, ready to humiliate her. But then Nayeon delicately places a +2 on top of Jeongyeon’s +4.

“Ha.”

“You can’t do that!” Jeongyeon stands up from her seat, beyond offended, ready to punch Nayeon if she has to.

“Yes I do! And I just did.” Nayeon chuckles. She leans back on her chair and grins at Jeongyeon teasingly.

“That’s cheating, you’re a cheater.” Jeongyeon says grumpily, but ultimately accepts Nayeon’s word and gathers all the cards.

“And you’re a loser.”

Jeongyeon shuffles the cards and Nayeon adds yet another win to the tally. 

“A  _ girlfriendless _ loser.” She adds under her breath. 

“Nayeon—” 

“I’m just saying!”

“You’ve been dating Sana for two weeks.”

“Two weeks more than you with a girlfriend.” Nayeon replies back without missing a beat. When she sees Jeongyeon leave the deck on the table, she leans over it and holds her wrists to prevent her from leaving. “It’s not that I’m trying to be annoying, I just think you need someone to hang out with.”

“I hang out with you.”

“But, you know,  _ hang out _ ,” Nayeon wiggles her eyebrows and laughs when Jeongyeon tries to leave again. “I’m sorry!”

“What do you even suggest I do? Blind date?”

“Well, kind of… I know someone.” Jeongyeon sits and listens, for once, so Nayeon goes on. “You know Mina?”

“Absolutely not.” Jeongyeon breaks free from Nayeon’s grasp and runs to her room. Nayeon follows her and stops her from closing the door on her face.

“Why not? She’s hot!”

“Yeah, and also Momo’s ex.” Jeongyeon reminds her, struggling to close the door with Nayeon’s face stuck between it and the frame. 

“Oh, so what! You guys broke up ages ago.”

“I don’t wanna date my ex’s ex, thank you very much.” Jeongyeon presses Nayeon’s forehead and successfully pushes her away. She closes the door and locks it. 

“You’re being so immature!” Nayeon bangs on her door, whining. 

Jeongyeon doesn’t reply, and soon she hears Nayeon stomp off. Not a second later, she gets a text from Nayeon with Mina’s instagram profile and phone number. She rolls her eyes and blocks Nayeon.

Jeongyeon is having a hard time focusing on her work. The day was nice, sunny, so she and Tzuyu decided to sit next to a window. Now Jeongyeon is staring out of it, fidgeting with one of her rings. 

She sees couples walking around, holding hands and showing gross and unnecessary pda. She scowls, but deep down, she still feels a little longing. 

Jeongyeon will be caught dead before she ever says Nayeon is right, but she can’t deny all her nagging is making her see things differently. 

“Are you dating anyone?” The question slips out of Jeongyeon’s mouth before she can really think about it. She looks over at Tzuyu, who blushes deeply up to her ears, caught off guard by the sudden question.

She stammers and moves around in her seat. “I- um, no. Why do you ask?” She raises her shoulders slightly and bites her lip nervously. 

“No reason,” Jeongyeon shakes her head, laughing at Tzuyu’s cuteness. “Sorry, I interrupted your work.”

“It’s okay,” Tzuyu whispers, going back to her textbook. She grabs her highlighter, uncaps it, then caps it again, and she accidentally slams it against the table when she looks up at Jeongyeon again.

“Are you?”

“Huh?”

“Dating. Are you?” Tzuyu asks awkwardly, cringing at herself for the way it came out. But Jeongyeon laughs again, not with any malice of course. 

“Ah, I’m not. I haven’t dated anyone in a while and my friend is bugging me about it.” 

They don’t usually chat much about their personal lives, as their relationship is more that of classmates and study buddies than friends. Jeongyeon realizes then that maybe she should make the effort, because she’d love to know Tzuyu more.

“Im Nayeon?” Tzuyu seems to regret saying that the second it’s out of her mouth. Jeongyeon tilts her head, curious at Tzuyu’s reaction.

“Yeah. Do you know her?”

“No, um, you just post a lot of pictures with her,” Tzuyu avoids Jeongyeon’s eyes, deciding to look out the window instead. Then she adds with a shaky voice, “I thought you two were dating.”

Jeongyeon can’t help but fake gag— it’s a reflex by now! “God, no. She’s my roommate and best friend, and I love her, but not like that. Don’t even tell her I said that, though, as far as she’s concerned she’s my biggest enemy.”

Tzuyu bites her lip and nods. She looks almost… relieved.

“Sorry if I intruded.”

“Not at all,” Jeongyeon smiles at her reassuringly. If she wants to get closer to Tzuyu, she figures right now is as good a time as any. “Are you busy after this?”

Tzuyu blushes again, just as deeply, and shakes her head. “I’m free, why?”

“Would you like to go grab something for lunch?” 

It’s the evening already when they decide to call it a day and head back to their dorms. 

Hanging out with Tzuyu was very fun, Jeongyeon could not stop cracking up at pretty much everything the younger said, even when she didn’t even mean to be funny. 

They had lunch, which Jeongyeon paid for after much insistence, and then Tzuyu bought them dessert, after some more insistence. Time flew while they got to know each other more, and before they knew it the staff at the café was asking them to leave so they could close.

Tzuyu also seemed to become less shy, except when Jeongyeon linked their arms together and she blushed once again. Now, they were arguing about who got to walk who home.

“I don’t want to be a bother…”

“Please, I insist. My apartment is a few blocks away from the dorms and I don’t want you walking alone at night.”

“But then you’ll be walking alone.”

Jeongyeon smirks, smug, and says, “Please, I’m a white belt in taekwondo.” 

She has to try a bit harder than Tzuyu, but she still manages to make her laugh.

Now, Jeongyeon isn’t usually one for affection, but something about Tzuyu is different. That something makes Jeongyeon hug Tzuyu goodbye when they reach her dorm, making the poor girl red for the nth time that day. 

“Thanks for today, it was really nice,” Jeongyeon pats her back and lets go of the embrace, feeling a bit guilty at how flustered Tzuyu looks.  _ She mustn’t be used to affection, either. _

“Y-yeah, it was. Thank you, too.” Tzuyu, ever the awkward one,  _ bows _ , and Jeongyeon slaps her arm when she laughs. 

“Ah, we should've done this sooner.”

They say goodbye and Jeongyeon waves at her until Tzuyu enters the building. When she turns back to leave, hands in her pockets and big smile on her face, she doesn’t see her two younger friends hiding behind a tree and hardly containing their surprise. 

Nayeon squints at Jeongyeon, staring at her more than the movie playing on the TV. And Jeongyeon notices it, of course she does, but she deliberately chooses to ignore Nayeon just to make her more mad. Between them, cramped in the small couch, are Dahyun and Chaeyoung, unaware of the silent fight going on between the roommates. 

The second the credits start rolling, Nayeon turns on the light and stands in front of Jeongyeon with her hands on her hips, knowing that she’ll be forced to stay there if their friends are over.

“I spoke with Mina.” Nayeon goes straight to the point. 

“Myoui Mina?” Dahyun asks, a bit impressed, and Chaeyoung slaps her thigh with a frown. Dahyun smiles apologetically and kisses her cheek.

“Yes,  _ her _ , and she said she’d be up for a date,” She says the last bit towards Jeongyeon.

“What the fuck, Nayeon?” She asks as calmly as possible.

“It’s just a date.” 

“With  _ Myoui Mina _ ,” Dahyun adds, which earns a huff from Chaeyoung.

“Exactly,” Nayeon points to Dahyun as if that proved anything. 

“I can’t go on a date with her!” Jeongyeon yells, exasperated. 

“Tell me a reason that isn’t that she’s your ex’s ex.”

“That’s a pretty good reason…” Chaeyoung whispers, and Dahyun nods.

Jeongyeon sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. She needs to come up with an excuse fast, anything to get Nayeon off her back. She doesn’t think it through, and says the best thing she can think of.

“Because I’m already seeing someone.” 

Nayeon’s jaw drops and her frown deepens. “Why didn’t you tell me?” She asks with a hint of hurt in her voice.

“Because I wasn’t sure where it was going until now. I didn’t want to get your hopes up.” Jeongyeon is surprised at how easily she lies, but she does feel bad for lying to Nayeon.

“Well who is it?”

“Chou Tzuyu!” Chaeyoung blurts out before Dahyun can stop her.

“Chaeng!”

“I’m sorry! I can’t keep it in any longer.”

“What?” Nayeon and Jeongyeon ask at the same time.

“We saw you hugging her outside the dorms…” Dahyun shrugs.

“And we were definitely not hiding,” Chaeyoung adds.

Before Jeongyeon can say that since when does hugging mean you’re dating someone, Nayeon scoffs.

“Yeah right, as if Jeong could get with  _ the  _ Chou Tzuyu.”

That makes Jeongyeon stop any argument she had in her mind. She tilts her head and frowns at Nayeon.

“Excuse me? What is that supposed to mean?” 

“Nothing, just that she’s very popular among freshmen and I doubt you had the courage, or even the opportunity, to talk to her  _ and ask her out. _ ”

“Well, clearly you don’t know me well enough, because I’ve been dating her for the past  _ month _ .”

Jeongyeon wants to punch herself, she doesn’t know why she can’t just close her damn mouth. Nayeon gasps and looks genuinely hurt when she places a hand on her chest. “That’s almost how long Sana and I have been dating… you really kept this from me?”

Dahyun and Chaeyoung, sensing the tension, decide to just get up from the couch and escape to the kitchen, leaving them to sort their problems alone.

“I’m sorry… I was afraid it’d go wrong and you’d think I was a huge loser.”

“I already think that.”

Jeongyeon rolls her eyes and stands up to be at eye level with Nayeon. 

“I’m sorry.”  _ For lying.  _

“It’s okay, I’m sorry too. I would have laid off if I knew you were with someone.”

_ Ok, maybe I don’t feel as bad _ . Glad that her impromptu plan worked, Jeongyeon opens her arms to hug Nayeon. She’ll finally know peace. She closes her eyes and wraps her arms tight around her friend.

Nayeon sighs and mutters against Jeongyeon’s shoulder. “So when can we meet her?” 

Jeongyeon opens her eyes fast. She should’ve known it wouldn’t be that easy. 

Tzuyu is quick to pack her things once class is over. She tends to hurry back to her dorm, because the amount of people asking her out or fawning over her is ridiculous and she’d rather avoid all of that.

But when she leaves the classroom, she’s surprised to find Jeongyeon leaning against a wall in a cool way. 

Tzuyu curses under her breath, because she wasn’t counting on seeing Jeongyeon today, so she didn’t put any effort in her appearance. She runs her fingers through her slightly tangled hair and walks up to her.

“Did you get lost?” Tzuyu jokes to ease her own nerves. Jeongyeon grins when she sees her and hugs her, something Tzuyu has become kind of accustomed to. 

“Do you have a second?” Jeongyeon bites her lip nervously. It’s weird, seeing her like this, because Tzuyu is used to her always being very confident. 

“For you, sure.” Tzuyu blushes ( _ again _ ) but Jeongyeon doesn’t seem to take it in a flirtatious way.  _ Oh well _ .

Jeongyeon leads her away from the crowd of students with a hand on her shoulder. Being among the freshmen, now Jeongyeon can see what Nayeon meant. Everyone is looking at them, well, at Tzuyu actually, and many seem to want to approach her to talk.

They stop under a flight of stairs where it’s mostly empty, almost at the back of the building. 

“I have a favor to ask,” Jeongyeon starts slowly, looking at Tzuyu with a guilty grimace. “But you can say no! It’s totally fine, I know I’m asking for a lot, so no pressure.”

“What is it?” Tzuyu chuckles, her nerves rising at all the possibilities of what Jeongyeon could ask. But despite all of the scenarios in her mind, Tzuyu could never guess Jeongyeon’s next words.

“I need you to be my girlfriend.”

When Tzuyu opens her eyes like plates and pales, Jeongyeon hurries to grab her by the shoulders. 

“Only for a week! Or less… Look, I made a mistake, and I accidentally lied to Nayeon and told her I’m dating you.”

“Accidentally…?”

“I’m so sorry, Tzu!” Jeongyeon drops her head and groans. “I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable. I shouldn’t even have asked.”

Tzuyu grabs Jeongyeon’s arm to catch her attention. She looks uncertain, but she still asks.

“Only a week?”

“It’d be one night out with them, really. After that I can just say we broke up. And blame them. That’ll teach her.”

Tzuyu takes a deep breath. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine something like this would happen— and she dreamed a  _ lot. _

“I’ll do it.” Tzuyu breathes out, smiling out of pure nerves. Jeongyeon squeals and jumps to hug Tzuyu.

“Thank you so so much! I’ll make it up to you, I promise!”

Tzuyu hugs Jeongyeon back, closing her eyes and thinking  _ what the hell did I get myself into _ . But, well, it’s not every day that your crush asks you to be her fake girlfriend. 

That night, Tzuyu is restless, lying in bed thinking about all the possible ways this can go in. Is she gonna have to hold Jeongyeon’s hand? Call her pet names?  _ Kiss _ her? Tzuyu shivers at the mere thought. 

She grabs her phone to distract herself, but it does the opposite when she sees she has a notification from Jeongyeon. She tagged her in a picture. Tzuyu gulps nervously and clicks on it.

It’s a picture of her at the library, resting on her hand and reading her textbook. She has a mug of coffee next to her and the light coming from the window lights up her face. It’s a beautiful picture, and Tzuyu wonders when Jeongyeon took it. The caption is only a heart and her username, but the comments are already asking Jeongyeon if she’s truly dating Tzuyu. 

Tzuyu likes the picture, and after a lot of thought, comments a kissy face. She immediately blocks her phone and throws it on the nightstand, too afraid to see the reactions. 

Three days before the date with her friends, Jeongyeon asks Tzuyu out. 

The weather got cold again, so they’re all bundled up, and Tzuyu is wearing Jeongyeon’s scarf. It smells like lemons, and Tzuyu keeps nuzzling her nose in it with the excuse of being cold. Jeongyeon opens the door for Tzuyu, and they walk with linked arms inside a cozy café. 

Jeongyeon orders for them and they sit on a quiet corner of the shop. 

“So, we should probably set ground rules, and get our story straight. Ha,  _ straight _ ,” Jeongyeon chuckles as she sweetens her coffee. Tzuyu laughs as well, and relaxes when she realizes this is just to talk about their fake date, and not a real one. She ignores the disappointment she feels. 

“What are we gonna do, exactly?” 

“We’ll have dinner in my apartment, with three of my friends. I want you to be ready because I know Nayeon will want to interrogate you. I’ll try to stop her as much as I can but she’s unbearable when she wants something.”

“Okay, so… how did we meet?” Tzuyu asks, uncertain. 

“We can tell the real version, we met at the library and decided to talk after running into each other many times.”

“Right,” Tzuyu nods, stirring her coffee. “Who asked who out?”

“Can we please say I did…” Jeongyeon whines cutely, making Tzuyu smile.

“Of course.”

They go over all the basics, setting on a solid story that’s still believable— not Jeongyeon’s idea that sounds like a YA novel. 

Jeongyeon is having a great time talking with Tzuyu. She genuinely can’t stop laughing when she’s with her, and her coffee even gets cold, forgotten in favor of telling Tzuyu how she and Nayeon met back in middle school.

In the middle of her story, however, Jeongyeon stops abruptly and her face falls. She’s looking at the door, so Tzuyu tries to turn to look at it, but Jeongyeon grabs her hands and makes her turn back around.

“Don’t look now!” Jeongyeon whisper-yells.

“Sorry! What happened?” Tzuyu mimics her tone, and they slouch on their seats, facing the wall. 

Jeongyeon covers her face with her hands and groans, “Um, so Nayeon tried to set me up with my ex’s ex. And she just walked in.” Jeongyeon discreetly points to Mina, who’s at the counter, ordering. 

“She’s really pretty,” Tzuyu whispers, amazed.

“Why does everyone keep saying that?”

“I don’t think she saw us,” Tzuyu tries to calm Jeongyeon. She straightens up in her seat and removes her hands from her face. And just as she spares a glance at Mina, the girl looks back at her.  _ Fuck _ . Mina smiles and waves at her. Jeongyeon returns the gesture, but she’s praying for the earth to swallow her. Mina gets her coffee and starts walking towards them.

Tzuyu is the one to act, as Jeongyeon is frozen in place. She moves her chair closer to Jeongyeon’s and leans in to kiss her cheek, letting her lips linger. It’s awkward, and Jeongyeon blushes, but she guesses it works, because Mina stops walking, purses her lips, and greets Jeongyeon with a nod instead. Mina walks away and Jeongyeon relaxes. 

“Sorry,” Tzuyu smiles apologetically, scooting away from Jeongyeon. 

Jeongyeon opens and closes her mouth, at a loss for words “I- no, t-thank you. Thank you, you saved me from a very awkward conversation.”

“Anytime,” Tzuyu chuckles. She smiles, feeling her cheeks ache, and Jeongyeon can’t stop smiling either, only she’s looking down trying to hide how embarrassed she feels. 

They’re just two idiots with cold coffees and red cheeks. 

Jeongyeon waits outside of Tzuyu’s dorm room, wearing a leather jacket over a green hoodie and jeans. She has her hands in the pockets of her hoodie and she swings back and forth on her feet.

Tzuyu walks out a few minutes later, wearing a padded coat over a peach colored sweater and light jeans. Jeongyeon smiles when she spots her, and a little cloud of warm air leaves her mouth.

“M’lady,” Jeongyeon bows dramatically. Tzuyu goes along with it and curtsies with her coat. “Are you ready to go?”

Jeongyeon extends her hand for Tzuyu, but still lets her know that it’s okay if she wants to back out. Tzuyu takes a deep breath and takes Jeongyeon’s hand.

Jeongyeon unlocks the door of the apartment, but before opening it, they both take a deep breath. 

Nayeon is waiting for them on the other side, with her arms crossed over her chest and trying to look intimidating. Jeongyeon thinks she looks like an idiot, but Tzuyu does feel a bit scared. Still, she wants to do well for Jeongyeon, she even  _ practiced _ , so she takes a deep breath for the nth time that day and outstretches her hand, putting on her best smile. 

“I’m Tzuyu, it’s nice to meet you.”

Nayeon frowns and takes her hand, shaking it strongly. “Im Nayeon. Best friend, roommate, future bridesmaid and godmother.”

Jeongyeon face palms but Tzuyu’s smile doesn’t waver. “Jeong talks about you all the time.”

“No I don’t!”

“Aw, that’s so cute,” Nayeon smiles at her friend, finally letting the tough persona go. She looks back at Tzuyu, “Welcome. By all means, make yourself at home. But not too much, we’re not looking for a third roommate.”

Dahyun and Chaeyoung go easy on her, luckily. They never met formally, but of course they knew about Tzuyu, and Tzuyu thinks she’s seen them around campus. They greet her in the kitchen, where they offer her snacks and something to drink. 

“We have a vegetarian meal tonight, since Jeongyeon said you don’t eat much meat,” Chaeyoung tells her as she finishes setting the table. 

Tzuyu feels touched, she didn’t expect Jeongyeon to put this much effort into a one time (fake) thing. 

They’re a bit cramped in the small table, so Tzuyu has to sit very close to Jeongyeon. She puts her arm around Tzuyu, and Tzuyu rests her head on her shoulder. They’re both very shy about it, but it feels almost… natural, to do so. 

Nayeon goes easy on the interrogation, slipping a few questions here and there while they eat. Jeongyeon stumbles the most over her words, but thankfully Tzuyu is there to save her. She even adds details they hadn’t discussed, but that makes the stories that much more convincing. She even adds a few anecdotes about Jeongyeon making a fool of herself while trying to get her to go out, which gets Nayeon to laugh and finish her seal of approval. “ _ Anyone that can make Jeongyeon look like an idiot is a friend of mine. _ ”

The dinner goes smoothly, and it ends on a good note. Dahyun and Chaeyoung leave early, and that’s their cue to leave as well. 

“I’ll walk you home,” Jeongyeon tells Tzuyu while she picks up the used dishes. 

“Where’s the bathroom?” Tzuyu asks shyly, and Nayeon points her to it. 

While piling the dishes on the sink, Nayeon smiles and nudges Jeongyeon.

“You got a good one there. She really likes you.”

“Huh?” Jeongyeon tilts her head in confusion.

“Why are you surprised? You’re dating aren’t you?”

“Well, yes but— what makes you say that?”

“She wouldn’t stop looking at you, just like a puppy,” Nayeon tries to imitate the way Tzuyu looks at her, but it only makes Jeongyeon roll her eyes. “I’m serious! Ask the girls, I’m sure they noticed it too. She seems pretty in love if you ask me.” 

Silence falls between them as Nayeon starts washing, only the sound of the open faucet filling the room. Jeongyeon leans against the counter and frowns, thinking about Nayeon’s words. Did Tzuyu really like her?

“I’m ready,” Tzuyu walks into the kitchen already holding her coat. “It was lovely to meet you.”

“Aw, you too Tzu,” Nayeon, now a softie for the younger girl, hugs her despite her soapy hands. “Come by whenever you feel like it.”

“Will do.” 

Jeongyeon and Tzuyu share a guilty look.

As they walk back to the university dorms, Jeongyeon can’t stop thinking about Nayeon’s words. 

She thinks back to when they first met, how jumpy and shy Tzuyu was, always blushing at everything and doing her best to accommodate Jeongyeon. And then she thinks of how easily she mingled with her friends tonight, confidently and easily winning their hearts over. She thinks of the times she caught Tzuyu staring at her, and even realizes now that sometimes Tzuyu asked her things that she definitely knew— maybe just as an excuse to talk to her?

Jeongyeon stops walking abruptly. Tzuyu does, too, and looks at her, concerned. “What’s wrong?”

“Tzuyu, do you like me?” Jeongyeon is upfront about it. 

Tzuyu stammers and looks around, nervous. “W-what makes you ask that?” She laughs and avoids Jeongyeon’s eyes. 

Jeongyeon steps closer to her and lifts her chin, making her look into her eyes. “Just tell me, please. Honestly.”

Tzuyu bites her lip, then chuckles airily. “How could I not?”

Jeongyeon stares at her in disbelief for a second. Tzuyu worries, thinking that Jeongyeon might reject her and it’ll ruin their friendship. But then Jeongyeon breaks out laughing and hugs Tzuyu. 

“I’m such an idiot! I should’ve realized sooner.”

“Yeah, I feel like I was being a bit obvious.” Tzuyu breathes out in relief. At least Jeongyeon doesn’t hate her. 

When they break the hug, Jeongyeon keeps her hands on Tzuyu’s shoulders. She stares at her with shiny eyes and a lot of warmth. 

“Let’s go on a date. A real one.” Jeongyeon proposes, smiling when she says it. “I want to do this properly.”

“A-are you serious?” Tzuyu stutters, blushing up to her ears. Jeongyeon chuckles and leans it to kiss her warm cheek. 

“A hundred percent.” 

Tzuyu grins, wide and bright, and hugs Jeongyeon again. “I’d love to.”

**Author's Note:**

> comms are open on [twitter](https://twitter.com/dahyunayeon/status/1346568394670305280?s=20), if you're interested, dm me! thank you for reading, and if you liked it please let me know :]


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